Resources
DISCLAIMER: The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania neither endorses the links nor approves of the links. These links are made available to assist the user in his or her search. The Commonwealth takes no responsibility in the links' operation or content. The links that are shown are not an exclusive listing of organizations available within the commonwealth. If organizations wish to be added to the listing, they need to contact the Watershed Education Coordinator.
State Agencies
Pennsylvania Department of Conservation & Natural Resources - (DCNR) www.dcnr.pa.gov/
Pennsylvania State Parks - www.dcnr.pa.gov/stateparks/index.htm
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) - The Pennsylvania State Water Plan www.pawaterplan.dep.pa.gov/statewaterplan/docroot/default.aspx
DEP Total Maximum Daily Waste Load data for PA - (GIS enabled) www.ahs.dep.pa.gov/TMDL/
DEP Water Quality - https://www.dep.pa.gov/Business/Water/CleanWater/WaterQuality/Pages/default.aspx
Pennsylvania Spatial Data Access Clearinghouse (search for data on water bodies in PA) - https://www.pasda.psu.edu/
Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission-Education - www.fishandboat.com/LearningCenter/Pages/default.aspx
The Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission Education Resources Catalog. The catalog offers free educational materials on aquatic habitats, fish, amphibians and reptiles, conservation, and more. - https://www.fishandboat.com/LearningCenter/EducationResourceCatalog/Pages/default.aspx
PA Trout in the Classroom- https://patroutintheclassroom.org/ This program is managed by the PA Fish & Boat Commission
The PA Fish & Boat Commission’s Aquatic Invasive Species page - http://fishandboat.com/ais.htm
The Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Standard Aligned System (SAS)-Environment & Ecology Standards drilled down to Watersheds & Wetlands - www.pdesas.org/Standard/Views#23245
The Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Standard Aligned System (SAS)-materials and resources for the Environment & Ecology Standards - www.pdesas.org/module/content/search/#search
Federal Agencies
EPA's Volunteer Stream Monitoring: A Methods Manual-this is an excellent resource - www.epa.gov/owow/monitoring/volunteer/stream/
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-Water Sense Program. WaterSense offers materials for teaching elementary children about the importance of saving water and the simple things they can do to become more water-efficient. - https://www.epa.gov/watersense/
EPA’s Adopt-a-Watershed - http://water.epa.gov/action/adopt/index.cfm
"Be a part of the World Water Challenge! (formerly called World Water Monitoring Day; now managed by EarthEcho) from March 22 - December each year- https://www.monitorwater.org
Surf Your Watershed-a helpful mapping tool to find your watershed from the EPA - http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/locate/index.cfm
WikiWatershed® is a cybercollaboratory for watershed protection, analysis, education and management. It features is a suite of web-based tools designed to assist citizens in managing water resources. When fully developed, it will leverage open source software and will function as an open collaborative resource for the community. PA is a part of WikiWatershed®. - http://wikiwatershed.org/
United States Geological Survey (USGS)-Stream Stats - http://water.usgs.gov/osw/streamstats/pennsylvania.html
New US Topographic Map Symbols - http://nationalmap.gov/ustopo/images/US_Topo_Map_Symbols.pdf
Basin Commissions and Agencies
The Delaware River Basin Commission - https://www.state.nj.us/drbc/
The Delaware Riverkeeper Network champions the rights of our communities to a Delaware River and tributary streams that are free-flowing, clean and healthy. - www.delawareriverkeeper.org/
The Susquehanna River Basin Commission - www.srbc.net/
Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission - www.orsanco.org
Ohio River Foundation - http://www.ohioriverfdn.org/about_the_river/index.html
The Great Lakes Commission - http://glc.org/about/
The Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin - www.potomacriver.org/
Interactive map to explore the sub-watersheds of the Potomac River basin - www.potomacriver.org/Atlas-Maps/Subwatersheds/
Explore the Potomac River Basin Water Quality monitoring inventory - www.potomacriver.org/Atlas-Maps/WQ-Inventory/
Schuylkill Action Network- zoomable watershed maps - www.schuylkillwaters.org/watershed_maps.cfm
River Network seeks to empower and unite people and communities to protect and restore rivers and other waters - www.rivernetwork.org
Non-profit Organizations
The Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds (formerly known as the Western PA Watershed Program) - http://pennsylvaniawatersheds.org/
Chesapeake Bay Program- Maps; this is a great resource for a variety of maps available for the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. - www.chesapeakebay.net/maps
The Chesapeake Bay Foundation teamed up with the International League of Conservation Photographers (iLCP) to highlight, through inspiring photos from across the watershed, the importance of cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay and the rivers and streams that feed it. This is an excellent 2.20 minute video. - www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACl4HRZzmM0
Helping people protect and manage the water resources of Pennsylvania through land use education. - http://extension.psu.edu/natural-resources/water/watershed-education
Stroud Water Resource Center-dedicated to studying and educating about freshwater (located in PA) - www.stroudcenter.org/
The Leaf Pack Program-coordinated by Stroud Water Research Center - www.leafpacknetwork.org/lpn/
Trout in the Classroom - www.troutintheclassroom.org/
PA Organization for Waters and Rivers (POWR) - http://pawatersheds.org/
Pennsylvania Sea Grant - https://seagrant.psu.edu/
Material Safety Data Sheets for LaMotte Water Quality Monitoring Kits. Searchable by kit or by individual reagent. If searching by kit do not enter the “01” at end of the model #. For example, enter 5858 for pH. - www.lamotte.com/en/support/msds-search
A series of portable hands-on models, EnviroScape® helps people of all ages, languages and cultures, better understand the sources and prevention of water pollution through visual, hands-on interaction. - www.enviroscapes.com/
Creek Connections is a partnership between Allegheny College and regional K-12 schools to turn waterways in Northwest Pennsylvania, Southwest New York, and the Pittsburgh area into outdoor environmental laboratories. Emphasizing a hands-on, inquiry based investigation of local waterways; this project annually involves over 40 different secondary schools and the 50 classes. http://sites.allegheny.edu/creekconnections/
Georgia Adopt-a-Stream program https://adoptastream.georgia.gov
American Rivers- Discover Your Rivers www.americanrivers.org/rivers/
Earth Force- Water Conservation and Quality (featuring the GM GREEN, KIC-NET, and Caring for Our Watershed programs) http://earthforce.org/water/
The Izaak Walton League of America- Creek Freaks, watershed activity videos https://www.youtube.com/user/IzaakWaltonLeague
The Izaak Walton League of America- Save Our Streams program www.iwla.org/conservation/water/local/save-our-streams
Winter Salt Watch Community Science opportunity from the Izaak Walton League https://www.iwla.org/water/winter-salt-watch
River of Words- Curriculum, Art & Poetry Contest, Teachers of the Year, and more! (Hosted by Saint Mary’s College of California) www.stmarys-ca.edu/center-for-environmental-literacy/river-of-words/educators
Storm Drain Stenciling Guide http://esseacourses.strategies.org/StormDrainStencilingGuide.pdf
River Network seeks to empower and unite people and communities to protect and restore rivers and other waters www.rivernetwork.org
New database of North American river widths, which is useful for observing the distribution and connections among rivers in North America. Designed for grades 3-5. https://mass.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/buac35-sci-riverwidth/river-width-north-american-rivers-and-their-widths/
Watershed Association Finder from the Pennsylvania Land Trust Association (PALTA) - https://palta.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=536f3d5d555f4b23a093a300906514de&utm_source=CL+Update%3A+Organization+Finder&utm_campaign=CL+Update+LT+Census&utm_medium=email Identify watershed associations and the watersheds they serve by typing in an address or clicking on a map.
Chesapeake Bay Foundation - https://www.cbf.org/about-the-bay/
Resources for Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEEs)
Bay Backpack is an online resource that provides educators with information about field studies and curriculum guides and lesson plans related to the Chesapeake Bay - http://baybackpack.com/
Online MWEE Guide - http://baybackpack.com/mwee/what-is-a-mwee
MWEE Online Course - https://cbexapp.noaa.gov/course/view.php?id=5555 (PA certified teachers can earn six Act 48 hours for completion of this online course)
MWEE Videos - http://baybackpack.com/mwee/what-is-a-mwee
NOAA Environmental Science Training Center - https://chesapeakebay.noaa.gov/environmental-science-training-center/environmental-science-training-center
Possible Funding Sources
Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts (PACD)- The PACD administers the Nonpoint Source Pollution Prevention Mini-Grant Program. With this funding, conservation districts are able to implement educational programs to increase local awareness of water quality issues and encourage citizen participation in activities to improve water quality in local watersheds. Grants of up to $2,000 are awarded to promote water quality and pollution prevention. Grant applications are usually due in March. https://pacd.org/?/
Toyota Tapestry Grants for Science Teachers www.toyotatapestry.com/
Target Foundation Grants (includes a grant that funds field trip expenses) https://corporate.target.com/corporate-responsibility/grants
PA DEP Environmental Education Grants - https://www.dep.pa.gov/Citizens/EnvironmentalEducation/Grants/Pages/default.aspx
Stormwater
StormwaterPA is your go-to resources for the most current stormwater information, management, projects, and education www.stormwaterpa.org
Stormwater Management in Philadelphia https://www.phila.gov/water/sustainability/greencitycleanwaters/Pages/default.aspx
Water Conservation/Service Projects
Call to action ideas for student service projects that protect/enhance their watershed - http://cgee.hamline.edu/watershed/action/projects/public_ed.htm
Kid’s ideas for conserving water at home - www.improvenet.com/a/kids-ideas-for-conserving-water-at-home
Groundwater/Springs
The re-designed search tool provides online access to individual water well reports, spring reports, and data package downloads. www.dcnr.pa.gov/topogeo/groundwater/pagwis/index.htm
Watershed Education PowerPoints
These resources are meant to be used for educational purposes only. Please give credit to DCNR- Bureau of State Parks.
Watershed Delineation PowerPoint for Laurel Hill State Park (26,582 kb) Created by Wil Taylor, Center Manager at Jennings Environmental Education Center, Pennsylvania State Parks
